Complications Associated With Ureteroscopic Management of Upper Tract Urothelial Carcinoma.

Objectives: To compile and examine safety data from clinical studies of endoscopic management of patients with low-grade upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) to identify rates and factors associated with reported complications.

Methods: Ovid Medline and Ovid Medline Daily (with Embase as secondary search) including citations from 1946-2018 were queried using the following terms: ureteroscopy, ureter, catheter, endoscopy, complication, adverse events, morbidity, ablation, laser, upper tract urothelial carcinoma, ureteral stricture, ureteral stenosis, and ureteral injury. Abstracts were reviewed for relevance; diagnostic studies, case studies, and reviews were excluded.

Prevalence of class I-III BRAF mutations among 114,662 cancer patients in a large genomic database.

These data represent the largest aggregation of BRAF mutations within a single clinical database to our knowledge. The relative proportions of both BRAF V600 mutations and non-V600 mutations are informative in all cancers and by malignancy, and can serve as a definitive gold-standard for BRAF mutation cancer incidence by malignancy. The rate of BRAF mutation in human cancer in a real-world large database is lower than previously reported likely representing testing more broadly across tumor types.

Memory in repeat sports-related concussive injury and single-impact traumatic brain injury.

Repeat sports-related concussive/subconcussive injury (RC/SCI) is related to memory impairment. : We sought to determine memory differences between persons with RC/SCI, moderate-to-severe single-impact traumatic brain injury (SI-TBI), and healthy controls. MRI scans from a subsample of participants with SI-TBI were used to identify the neuroanatomical correlates of observed memory process differences between the brain injury groups.

Oncoplastic Breast-Conserving Surgery: Can We Reduce Rates of Mastectomy and Chemotherapy Use in Patients with Traditional Indications for Mastectomy?

Introduction: Traditional indications for mastectomy include multiple ipsilateral lesions and/or disease spanning ≥ 5 cm. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy increases breast conservation but does not improve survival. We hypothesized that oncoplastic breast-conserving surgery (OPS) may allow for breast conservation while providing full staging and tumor profiling information to guide systemic therapy decisions, thereby permitting more judicious chemotherapy use.

Survival with Olaparib in Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer.

Background: We previously reported that olaparib led to significantly longer imaging-based progression-free survival than the physician's choice of enzalutamide or abiraterone among men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who had qualifying alterations in homologous recombination repair genes and whose disease had progressed during previous treatment with a next-generation hormonal agent. The results of the final analysis of overall survival have not yet been reported.

Methods: In an open-label, phase 3 trial, we randomly assigned patients in a 2:1 ratio to receive olaparib (256 patients) or the physician's choice of enzalutamide or abiraterone plus prednisone as the control therapy (131 patients).

Pituitary adenomas in older adults (≥ 65 years): 90-day outcomes and readmissions: a 10-year endoscopic endonasal surgical experience.

Introduction: Longer lifespan and newer imaging protocols have led to more older adults being diagnosed with pituitary adenomas. Herein, we describe outcomes of patients ≥ 65 years undergoing endoscopic adenoma removal. To address selection criteria, we also assess a conservatively managed cohort.

Molecular profiling of melanoma brain metastases compared to primary cutaneous melanoma and to extracranial metastases.

Background: Brain metastases are a significant cause of mortality and morbidity for patients with melanoma. We hypothesize that the development of brain metastases may be explained by molecular heterogeneity between primary cutaneous melanoma (PCM) or extracranial (ECM) and brain (MBM) melanoma metastases.

Materials And Methods: We compared next-generation sequencing, tumor mutational burden (TMB), and immunohistochemical staining for PD-L1 expression, among 132 MBM, 745 PCM, and 1190 ECM.

Disparities in the Occurrence of Late Effects following Treatment among Adolescent and Young Adult Melanoma Survivors.

Background: Melanoma is the third most common cancer in the adolescent and young adult (AYA) population; however, no studies have addressed the occurrence of adverse health conditions following melanoma treatment in these survivors.

Methods: Data for patients ages 15 to 39 years diagnosed with cutaneous melanoma from 1996 to 2012 and surviving ≥2 years were obtained from the California Cancer Registry and linked to statewide hospitalization data. The influence of age at diagnosis, sex, race/ethnicity, neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES), health insurance, and surgery on the development of adverse health conditions was evaluated using Cox proportional hazards regression models.

COVID-19 and cancer: A guide with suggested COVID-19 rule-out criteria to support clinical decision-making.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a highly contagious zoonotic pathogen that has exacted heavy public health, social and economic tolls. In February 2020, the World Health Organization acronymed the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 as COVID-19, for coronavirus disease 2019. The number of confirmed COVID-19 infections, which has been detected in at least 103 countries, has reached 1,970,225 worldwide as of April 14, 2020 with 124,544 deaths, according to the U.

Long term survival and local control outcomes from single dose targeted intraoperative radiotherapy during lumpectomy (TARGIT-IORT) for early breast cancer: TARGIT-A randomised clinical trial.

Objective: To determine whether risk adapted intraoperative radiotherapy, delivered as a single dose during lumpectomy, can effectively replace postoperative whole breast external beam radiotherapy for early breast cancer.

Design: Prospective, open label, randomised controlled clinical trial.

Setting: 32 centres in 10 countries in the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, the United States, and Canada.

Review of Radium-223 and Metastatic Castration-Sensitive Prostate Cancer.

Radium-223 is approved for treatment of bone metastases in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). After the ALSYMPCA trial showed overall survival benefit with the addition of radium-223 to standard of care in mCRPC in 2013, there have been numerous publications and trials using radium-223 in mCRPC. Recently, there has been interest in using radium-223 earlier in the metastatic prostate cancer timeline, in metastatic castrate-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC); however, currently, radium-223 in mCSPC treatment is investigational.

Tuberculum Sellae Meningiomas in Pregnancy: 3 Cases Treated in the Second Trimester and Literature Review.

Background: Tuberculum sella meningiomas typically present with progressive visual loss. It is also known that meningiomas can become symptomatic during pregnancy. Herein we report on 3 patients who presented with progressive visual decline during pregnancy, prompting urgent surgical removal of their meningiomas.

Development of a Risk Score and Nomogram to Predict Individual Benefit Attained from the Addition of Adjuvant Chemotherapy in the Treatment of Stage II Colon Cancer.

Background: Current guidelines recommend considering adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) for stage II colon cancer (CC) with poor prognostic clinicopathologic and molecular features. However, the relative impact of individual or constellations of high-risk features remains undefined. We developed an individualized point-of-care tool to predict survival benefit attained from the addition of AC.

The Supraorbital Eyebrow Craniotomy for Intra- and Extra-Axial Brain Tumors: A Single-Center Series and Technique Modification.

Background: The supraorbital (SO) eyebrow craniotomy provides minimally invasive access to the anterior and middle fossae and parasellar region.

Objective: To present a series of patients treated with the SO approach to assess outcomes, the impact of endoscopy, and describe a modified pericranial flap aimed at reducing postoperative frontalis paresis and hypesthesia.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was undertaken of our prospective database of patients who underwent SO craniotomy for tumor/cyst removal.

Re-establishing the Role of Robot-assisted Radical Cystectomy After the 2020 EAU Muscle-invasive and Metastatic Bladder Cancer Guideline Panel Recommendations.

The EAU guidelines panel on muscle-invasive and metastatic bladder cancer (MIBC) recently recommended open radical cystectomy (ORC) as the best surgical approach for MIBC patients. We critically re-examine the indications for considering ORC as the first choice over robot-assisted radical cystectomy. To the best of our knowledge, this is not supported by trials or meta-analyses.

The Efficacy and Safety of Transversus Abdominis Plane Blocks After Open Cholecystectomy in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Background: Postoperative pain management is challenging in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study assesses the safety and efficacy of transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks as an adjunct for postoperative pain control after an open cholecystectomy in LMICs during short-term surgical missions (STSMs). TAP block is a regional anesthesia technique that has been shown to be effective in providing supplementary analgesia to the anterolateral wall post abdominal surgery.

Association of BRAF V600E/K Mutation Status and Prior BRAF/MEK Inhibition With Pembrolizumab Outcomes in Advanced Melanoma: Pooled Analysis of 3 Clinical Trials.

Importance: The optimal sequencing of immune checkpoint inhibitors and targeted therapy for BRAF V600E/K-mutant melanoma is not well established.

Objective: To assess the association of BRAF wild-type (WT) or BRAF V600E/K-mutant status and BRAF inhibitor (BRAFi) with or without MEK inhibitor (MEKi) therapy with response to pembrolizumab.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This study is a post hoc subgroup analysis of pooled data from 3 multinational, multisite studies: KEYNOTE-001 (data cutoff September 1, 2017), KEYNOTE-002 (data cutoff May 30, 2018), and KEYNOTE-006 (data cutoff December 4, 2017).

Inter-Tumor Heterogeneity-Melanomas Respond Differently to GM-CSF-Mediated Activation.

Granulocyte-monocyte colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is used as an adjuvant in various clinical and preclinical studies with contradictory results. These were attributed to opposing effects of GM-CSF on the immune or myeloid systems of the treated patients or to lack of optimal dosing regimens. The results of the present study point to inter-tumor heterogeneity as a possible mechanism accounting for the contrasting responses to GM-CSF incorporating therapies.

Inaccurate pretreatment staging can impact survival in early stage esophageal adenocarcinoma.

Background: Given the survival advantage of neoadjuvant treatment for locally advanced esophageal cancer, accurate clinical staging is necessary. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical (c) and pathologic (p) staging concordance rates for presumably early stage esophageal adenocarcinoma patients that had upfront esophagectomy (UFE) and evaluate if survival (OS) was negatively affected by inaccurate preoperative staging and subsequent treatment selection.

Methods: An NCDB retrospective review of nonmetastatic esophageal adenocarcinoma patients that had UFE.

Integrated Assessment of Circulating Cell-Free MicroRNA Signatures in Plasma of Patients with Melanoma Brain Metastasis.

Primary cutaneous melanoma frequently metastasizes to distant organs including the brain. Identification of cell-free microRNAs (cfmiRs) found in the blood can be used as potential body fluid biomarkers for detecting and monitoring patients with melanoma brain metastasis (MBM). In this pilot study, we initially aimed to identify cfmiRs in the blood of MBM patients.

The IMEx Coronavirus interactome: an evolving map of Coronaviridae-Host molecular interactions.

The current Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has spurred a wave of research of nearly unprecedented scale. Among the different strategies that are being used to understand the disease and develop effective treatments, the study of physical molecular interactions enables studying fine-grained resolution of the mechanisms behind the virus biology and the human organism response. Here we present a curated dataset of physical molecular interactions, manually extracted by IMEx Consortium curators focused on proteins from SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1 and other members of the family.

Targeting the ERG oncogene with splice-switching oligonucleotides as a novel therapeutic strategy in prostate cancer.

Background: The ERG oncogene, a member of the ETS family of transcription factor encoding genes, is a genetic driver of prostate cancer. It is activated through a fusion with the androgen-responsive TMPRSS2 promoter in 50% of cases. There is therefore significant interest in developing novel therapeutic agents that target ERG.

Breast cancer care during a pandemic: an opportune time for cryoablation?

Purpose: Cryoablation is a minimally-invasive percutaneous procedure that is capable of reducing the psychosocial burden of surgical delay while also decreasing the morbidity of breast cancer therapy. The purpose of this editorial is to discuss the potential role of cryoablation for reducing the psychosocial burden of surgical delay during the COVID-19 pandemic by expediting the management of breast cancer while also lessening demand on limited healthcare resources.

Methods: This editorial critiques current expert opinion recommendations that aim to reduce viral transmission and preserve healthcare resources during the COVID-19 pandemic by advocating delay of elective breast cancer surgery.